At 20.25 hours on 9 January 1943 the unescorted Louise Lykes (Master Edwin John Madden) was hit by two of four torpedoes fired by U-384 from a distance of 1800 meters, while proceeding on a zigzag course at 15 knots. The ship exploded with a terrible blast, forcing the U-boat to crash dive because debris was falling onto the deck and into the water around her. When the U-boat resurfaced after five minutes, the ship had disappeared. The master, nine officers, 41 crewmen and 34 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, two 3in and eight 20mm guns) were lost.